>> reporter: good morning i'm amy hollyfield live in castro valley. the big holiday known for drinking and drive something here. police officers tell us they are ready. also, a 16-year-old girl says she was hit in the head by a sharks' fan during a game. the teen was rooting for the visiting canucks, suffered a concussion. union city police warning people to watch the amount of gold they wear after a man tried to rob a woman at gunpoint. dense fog in north bay, mist and drizzle. will any rain come to your neighborhood? good morning i'm frances dinglasan, fog advisory for some of the bridges looking better compared to yesterday. here's a live shot of the bay bridge, traffic still light. 4:30 a.m. on this friday, the last friday of 2011. thanks for joining us, i'm

eric thomas. kristen sze is off today. wet roads face you as you leave home this morning. let's check in with lisa in for mike. not much accumulation, right? >> no, if we see anything in the north bay it would be less than 1/10 of an inch. coastal areas could see a couple hundredths. look how mild the temperatures are. low 50s right now with all that cloud cover. you add in the moisture and we have reduced visibility, only a mile and a half in san jose, hayward, 3/4 in mountain view. santa rosa half a mile no rain on our radar i'll show you when it is going to move through, in a bit. topping our news, starting at midnight tonight, the odds of getting caught drinking and driving will go way up if you do it. strike teams hit the roads for the annual crackdown.

amy hollyfield is live in castro valley. the effort includes police checkpoints. >> reporter: they are going to be out all over the place. of course this is a year round campaign. this office in castro valley their arrests for dui's are up 30%. the sergeant emphasizes to his officers every night to look for drunk drivers. but of course this is the big holiday known for drinking and driving. check points have been in place since december 16th, in the bay area so far they've made 1,000 arrests. those numbers are up in several counties. you can look at what both ways, is that good or bad? the officers that we spoke with say, they see it as a positive we aggressively seek out the impaired drivers. the thing that we like to do is for education and enforcement. we also want to educate the

driver about the affects of drinking and driving. if they are going to go out and drink they should designate a driver. >> reporter: they see it as a positive that we are getting these people off the roads before something bad happens. here are the numbers, 1,000 arrests most in alameda county, 485, large strike team in that county setting up check points. santa clara 279, san mateo 111 and sonoma county, 132. we want to give you information about safeways to -- safe ways to get home. bart running until 3 a.m.. definitely safe ways for to you get home. we have information about free rides, lift -- a list of safe ways on abc7news.com. police say designate a driver. sometimes they've found that the designated driver is

driving drunk. make sure your designated driver stays sober. amy hollyfield, abc7 news. 4:34 now. a teenaged hockey fan suffered a concussion at hp pavillion wednesday night. she says a drunken sharks fan smacked her in the head for wearing a canucks jersey. the 16-year-old left in this news photo says she had been harassed all night before she bass struck. while medics were ledding her -- ledding here in the ambulance another sharks fan saw her jersey and called for her to suck it up. last night the team released the statement saying that the person who made contact with the injured fan stated it was accidental during the celebration of a sharks' goal. so far no arrests have been made. nearly 250 high school kids headed to utah for a holiday ski trip were busted

with booze, a bong and drugs many from the bay area police decided to let them continue on with their vacation. >> reporter: pipes, s, booze and what could be pounds of -- marijuana all confiscated from buses full of bay area high students heading to utah for a ski trip. the buses stopped for food, that's when the trouble began. >> some were smoking or maybe even smoking marijuana outside the bus. it appeared suspicious to the people. >> reporter: they called police. >> our officers went with our k-9 units and sheriff's department there to assist. the drug dogs hit on all five buses. >> they found an astonishing amount of marijuana and alcohol. >> reporter: the trip was organized by swat, summer, winter action tours, swat's owner and president wasn't

thrilled with how the police handled the situation. >> the police said if there is any more contraband on the bus you need to turn it over and you won't get in trouble. >> it is a tough situation to hear about when you are looking at kids who are supposed to have a fun time. >> reporter: he is here to watch his daughter play in a basketball tournament. he says police are sending the wrong message. >> i think you have to put an iron fist down, send a message this is not going to be tolerated. >> reporter: swat's own area greed so he did his own investigation by asking chaperones and security and handing down his own punishment. >> once that bus got to salt lake city, we stopped the bus, interviewed everybody and sent 17 kids home ii >> the group of kids -- was just a fraction of the entire trip dubbed el nino 2011. there are 1800 high school students from all over california and arizona who

participate. the young organ donor murdered in oakland last week will be laid to rest today. funeral services are scheduled this morning for charles the 23-year-old was killed in west oakland december 22nd. his vital organs were donated saving the lives of four. butler completed a merchant marine program and was ready to begin traveling the world. police are still searching for his killer. thieves desperate to get their hands-on valuable gold have struck again. latest robbery at an apartment complex in union city. police say this man approached two women yesterday and tried to rob one for her gold jewelry in broad daylight. he shot at her husband who tried to intervene. >> the suspect was still trying to rob the victim and pulling -- tried to pull off her jewelry but she couldn't get it off. the suspect saw the husband

coming and he told him to step back, the husband didn't. >> the suspect missed the woman's husband then ran off. police are advising people to wear less gold because the price continues to rise and so do these kinds of targeted robberies. 16 occupy squatters are facing charges following a police raid on a foreclosed home they were taken into custody when they refused to leave a house on 10th street. someone from fannie mae call the police. the lender owns the property. the occupiers say they want the home turned into low income housing. wednesday police cleared an occupy oakland tent city in a vacant lot a few blocks away police arrested one and cited 14. for the second time this week a southwest airlines flight struck a migratory bird near sacramento airport. a warning we are about to show you the evidence of one of those bird strikes this one got caught in an elevator flap

of a boeing 737 last night. inbound flight 2983 from burbank landed without incident the pilot was unaware until the crew discovered it. wednesday morning another southwest plane departing sacramento struck another bird and flight 1166 to ontario had to turn around, it also landed safely. sacramento has more bird strikes than any west coast airport because it is located in the western fly-away for migratory birds. lisa is in for mike. we have mist and drizzle in spots. >> yes. the fog with reduced visibility. if you are heading out of town, good chance there could be delays at sfo and in oakland. a cold front moving through the area is going to help also to mix things out and lift those ceilings later this afternoon. 54 fremont. 52 san francisco. if you think it looks and

feels mild you are right. nine or 10° warmer than yesterday. taking a hit on visibility, less than a mile in santa rosa, better in hayward. mountain view 3/4 of a mile at our coast, we have fog, mist and drizzle. it is definitely hard to navigate out there. mostly cloudy, areas of fog we see spotty light rain showers north of the golden gate. when we mix out partly cloudy and that's it for the rain. here's live doppler, the southern end of this frontal band is going to swing through the afternoon today just a chance of showers mainly north of san francisco. good morning. another foggy one in some spots. there is a fog advisory for the san mateo bridge and you can see why here you can see headlights moving eastbound blurry with the moisture, westbound traffic barely visible, a few taillights leaving hayward.

we head to the north bay 101 san rafael, looking clear southbound down towards the marin civic center, go go bridge. in the south bay, also light and clear right now headlights on northbound 280, 17 coming out of the santa cruz mountains. it is 4:41 now. still ahead, the game of fetch that got a 19-year-old and his bog in a precarious predicament. have your children outgrown their booster seats? the safety law is about to change and your kids may not medicare. it doesn't cover everything. and what it doesn't cover can cost you some money. that's why you should consider an aarp... medicare supplement insurance plan...

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good morning. a live picture of the walnut creek area i-680 taillights heading southbound you can see the reflection on the road, a little wet. i drove this way earlier this morning and saw mist and

drizzle the whole way into san francisco. be careful on this last friday of 2011. 19-year-old man and his dog are safe after a dramatic rescue on a steep hillside in southern california. the two fell down a cliff, near san fernando after the man's father threw a bottle and the dog chased it over the edge. the teen tried to save the dog but ended up sliding down. firefighters were able to carry the dog to safety but the 19-year-old had to be lowered to the bottom of the cliff. neither the dog or the teen were physically injured. psychologically, a different deal. new law going into effect that parent needs to know about. it has to do with your child and car seats. disobey in law and you can face a fine of up to $500. sue thompson explains what it is. >> reporter: 7-year-old kennedy on new year's day will be back riding in a booster

seat. >> i can't believe it. >> reporter: a new law makes it mandatory. >> law says children under 8-years-old need to be in a booster seat or car seat. >> reporter: that's right, california's 6 and 7-year-olds will be required to ride in booster seas, starting sunday. her father says the law means more work, but safety matters. >> it is a little more work, but we do it, we manage. >> reporter: safety expert carol powers wants parents to know the benefits. >> this lap belt is riding on the top of the thighs. shoulder belt goes across the hard bones and lands in the middle of the shoulder. >> reporter: chen the potential danger without a -- then the potential danger without a restraint. >> see how it goes across her neck. she going to be uncomfortable and maybe going to want to do this, this is dangerous

because she is not in her seat belt properly. >> that car seat could have saved her life, i would have liked to have had that forced upon me. >> reporter: another important thing to note, once your child is too big for a booster seat it will be law that parents make sure kids 16 and under are seat belted in, if not you could face fines for that as well. sue thompson, abc7 news. next up, the surprising change in number of death sentences issued in california. the romney campaign tries to seal the deal in iowa. hot wheels. the worst day of the year to park your car in the word is swapportunity.

can i have the definition? swapportunity: the opportunity to swap a higher calorie snack for a yoplait light. can you use it in a sentence? mmm. swapping a 300 calorie donut for this 110 calorie strawberry shortcake is a good swapportunity. that's not a real word. oh haha it's real. [ female announcer ] delicious, creamy, yoplait light. over 30 flavors each around 100 calories. do the swap today.

. good friday morning. a weak cold front that is going to swing through much of california today. bay area will see light

sprinkles, we are looking at partly cloudy for the rest of the weekend. nation's mid section light showers into minnesota, wisconsin with warm weather in the northeast. highs 5 to 15° above normal with a few rain showers in new england. that's a look at the national weather if you need more weather information take a look at our website at abc7news.com. 4:49 now. death penalty rates are drastically down in california. this year the number of people sentenced to capital punishment, fell to 10 according to a report in the "l.a. times". one of the lowest levels since california -- california resainted the death penalty in 1978. prosecutors may be -- seek more life sentences in light of the long appeals process surrounding death penalty convictions and the six year moratorium imposed on executions. final dash in iowa.

tuesday night voters will make their choices in the iowa caucuses will they stay with front-runners mitt romney, ron paul or surprise the nation and choose another candidate? tahmon bradley as the latest. >> i'm running for president. if you get a chance to caucus, remember the name mitt romney. >> reporter: romney is benefiting from the remarkable collapse of the gingrich campaign. according to a new poll, romney tops the republican field in the hawkeye state with 25%. ron paul comes in second with 22%. rick santorum has surged to third place with 16%. now in fourth place, newt gingrich, who just three weeks ago topped the feel. >> -- >> reporter: gingrich and nominee dealing with a threat from the right. first santorum, who has been winning over conservatives, spending more time in iowa. >> bigger numbers and feel very good. >> reporter: then there's texas congressman ron paul.

>> something has to change. >> reporter: a strong organization in iowa and got a boost when state senator sorensen left michelle bachmann's campaign to sign up for team paul. >> [ inaudible ] >> reporter: michelle bachmann says ron paul would be a dangerous president. jon huntsman called him unelectable. tahmon bradley, abc news, washington. if you take a look outside, you will see there's fog out there and there is mist and drizzle. lisa is in for mike with a look at the forecast. >> here i am! >> there you are. you shudder to think the number of people -- [ unintelligible ] she is in for mike. we see some reflection from the bridge deck.

>> i definitely had wipers on this morning. not much out there. if you are sleeping in this morning or just going to be out later in the afternoon you will see the ceilings lift and we'll continue begin to enjoy partly cloudy conditions. everybody wants rain. -- numbers are mile due to cloud cover, low 50s for the cooler spots, mid 50s for concord and fremont. redwood city 54, 50 to in san francisco as well as novato and napa. the temperatures not the whole story. the other story is the visibility. we are having a lot of pockets of dense fog around the bay so be careful. the airport isçç at nine milei expect that to change. less than a mile, about a half mile santa rosa, mile and a half hayward, 3/4 of a mile mountain view and the coast mist and drizzle you need wipers, low beams take it slow

all the oils accumulated on the road dry for sole, areas of fog we see spotty hour in the north bay through the afternoon it will be light won't be much to it, the rest of the bay area partly cloudy, dry and mile tomorrow, sunday the last weekend of the year. here's live doppler, a couple of inches of rain expected towards oregon/california border. clouds begin to shift south the tail end is going to push . the rest of the morning a lot of -- cloud cover 9:00, the front still limping along by the afternoon it breaks up and wash out. south bay communities will see sunshine if you see any rain it will be less than 1/10, a couple hundredths along the coast, mountains, hills could see persistent mist and drizzle. we are only 24% of normal

statewide. 15% of normal sierra nevada, last year 2 -- we definitely need the rain. is it going to be in the forecast for the weekend? no. later today conditions begin to dry out. chance of showers in the early morning hours with the mist and drizzle, 59 san francisco, 62 in palo alto, 61 san jose, 63 morgan hill. here's the next seven days, dry, even milder conditions over the weekend by the middle of the week mid upper 60s with strong ridge of high pressure at least the first week of 2012 continued dry and mild. first opportunity of rain slight one not impressive, today and this morning. good morning. chp en route north 101 to eastbound 92 that lower right hand corner.

we will let you know if it slows things down so far very light traffic this week. the accidents didn't cause much of a problem. there's a fog advisory for highway 1 area and pacifica and daly city. san mateo bridge visibility limited one for the dunbarton bridge. we'll check out the golden gate bridge next, more fog here but not many other fellow commuters at this point. get the latest traffic information by going to abc7news.com/traffic. >> frances, you don't think people are taking friday off on the last weekend of 2011, do you? >> it is a possibility. too bad we are not one of them. san francisco appeals court says a law giving tele-- telecommunications companies immunity for helping the government look for terrorists constitutional. appeal involved 33 cases filed by groups claiming their

privacy was violated. reports say the national security agency was operating out of a secret room in san francisco and collecting call records of tens of millions of americans in a separate ruling the court says the government can be sued for the warrantless surveillance of americans, phone conversations and e-mails. new year's eve may be the last time you will be able to -- starting january 1st, new law takes effect in california that bans the sale of beer floated -- loaded with extra caffeine. [ unintelligible ]ççó fans behaving badly. 16-year-old brain cancer survivor is attacked at a sharks game. what is the teen saying and

what is delaying the police investigation? >> reporter: one thousand people have already encountered them and the holiday isn't even here yet. i'm amy hollyfield live in castro valley. next, find out who is headed out and who is on the lookout this weekend. it's the perfect time to find great deals

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